The Dragon's Roost

The Mental Excreta of Michael Cieslak

My Confusion Schedule

The first Con1 is just around the corner! This time next week I should be in post-con recovery mode.2 Before then, I will have been at ConFusion.3 For those of you who will be there, this is where I will be, should you want to come and say hi!Urban Fantasy and Paranormal RomanceFriday 18:00 Allen Park

Urban Fantasy and Paranormal Romance have a lot in common: mythical creatures in modern settings, noir and crime fiction aesthetics, and, often, romantic plotlines. What distinguishes the two genres, and where to they overlap? How do they use their common elements to create different goals?

Saturday 12:00 ErieAuthors are often cautioned to avoid info-dumps in our work: lengthy explanations of science and history have fallen out of fashion in favor of subtly weaving in relevant research without drawing attention to it. But William Goldman broke this rule throughout The Princess Bride; most memorably in Wesley's fight scene with Montoya, where the two spend the entire fight discussing real swordsmen who influenced the theory and practice of renaissance fencing. Panelists will discuss when it's a good idea to shine a light on your research, and recommend examples of research-dumps that manage to entertain and delight readers.

The Stories We Pass DownSaturday 14:00 DearbornThe central conceit of The Princess Bride was that Goldman wanted to share S. Morgenstern’s classic--his childhood favorite--with his own kid. This is a relatable experience for many readers. But many of us find ourselves in Goldman's shoes: trying to manage our disappointment that our kid could barely choke down the first chapter of our childhood favorite. How do we decide whether a book we loved as a kid is a good fit for our own kids, and when they're old enough to appreciate it? How can we share our favorites with our kids in a way that respects their individual taste?